Respond to Putin’s Illegal Invasion of Ukraine with Diplomacy, Not War
There’s no “national interest” worth risking nuclear conflict. But urgent diplomacy and humanitarian aid — and Russia’s own antiwar movement — could stop the suffering.
Putin’s Cold, Cold Strategy
Russia’s aim is to create a frozen conflict in Ukraine, but time is not on Putin’s side.
It’s Settled That Israel Is Committing Apartheid. Now What Should We Do About It?
Movements for justice and Palestinian rights laid the ground for recent declarations by Amnesty International and other human rights organizations. Now we have to follow up.
The U.S. ‘COMPETES’ with China — At What Cost?
The COMPETES Act, which ramps up spending to raise the stakes with China, puts Washington’s warped priorities on display.
Mexican President Calderon: Kingpin of the Kingpin Strategy
The next president should reject current President Felipe Calderón’s profligate use of the military, and should make protection of human rights a cornerstone of a policy to back the power of traffickers.
U.S. Sides With Israel’s Nukes Over Iran’s Lack Thereof
The United States sides with a state with an illegal nuclear weapons program over one without one.
Syrian Kurds Fleeing to Iraqi Safe Haven
It was a January evening when his Syrian army unit raided a house near the city of Zabadani, not far from Damascus, the former sergeant recalled. A 70-year-old man wearing a hospital gown was brought to the house, and the soldiers, including a colonel, interrogated him. When he wasn’t able to respond to their satisfaction, one of the guards beat him ferociously in the face with a helmet.
Truce Between Salvador’s Maras for Real — for Now
The government turning its iron fist into an open hand and collaboration on music projects have helped cement a truce between rival gangs in El Salvador.
Stateless and Fancy-Free
Conservatives and Tea Partiers don’t understand that the rich — including U.S. corporations — don’t see themselves as Americans.
Labor Trafficking: Modern-day Slave Trade
The freer flow of commodities and capital has been one of the features of the contemporary process of globalization. Unlike in the earlier phase of globalization in the 19th century, however, the freer flow of commodities and capital has not been accompanied by a freer movement of labor globally. The dynamic centers of the global economy, after all, have imposed ever tighter restrictions on migration from the poorer countries.Yet the demand for cheap labor in the richer parts of the world continues to grow, even as more and more people in developing countries seek to escape conditions of economic stagnation and poverty that are often the result of the same dynamics of a system of global capitalism that have created prosperity in the developed world.
Elections and Instability in Algeria
Algeria’s instability claimed another self-immolation victim, Rechak Hamza, on April 29. Hamza set himself on fire in Jijel, in eastern Algeria, suffering third-degree burns. He was airlifted to a hospital in Constantine before succumbing to his injuries. His funeral was held on May 2.
Promoting Democracy in Iran Is Not Only Wishful Thinking, But Belligerent
Foreign Affairs contributor Patrick Clawson clings to the hoary old myth of democracy promotion as a means to regime change in Iran.
Review: The Islamists Are Coming
The Islamists Are Coming: Who They Really Are is a compilation of essays edited by Robin Wright that examines the backgrounds, worldviews, and positions on political, economic and social issues of Islamist political parties across the Middle East and North Africa. The success of Islamists in elections indicates that these parties enjoy support from large sections of the Arab world. Although Islamists did not initiate the “Arab Spring” or participate in the early protests, they are now using this democratic awakening in the region to acquire power.
Bin Laden Put Out to Pasture
The terrorism king had become too soft for the new generation of jihadi.